Numbers 21 — The Bronze Serpent

What it means

As Israel journeys through the wilderness they grow impatient and speak against God and Moses, and the LORD sends venomous serpents among them so that many are bitten and die. When the people confess their sin and plead for mercy, God does not remove the serpents but provides a remedy: Moses is to make a bronze serpent and lift it up on a pole, and everyone who looks at it in faith will live. The cure is utterly outside themselves; the dying need only turn their eyes to the lifted-up sign that God has appointed, and they are healed. The account holds together the holiness of God against sin, His mercy toward the repentant, and salvation that comes by simple, trusting looking rather than by works. It pictures a God who judges rebellion yet provides a means of life for all who will look to Him.